Acura MDX Sport Hybrid
From AB
If you like the hybrid tech of the Acura NSX, but don't need a
six-figure, 191-mph supercar as your daily driver, you might enjoy the
extra room of the Acura MDX Sport Hybrid. It uses the same SH-AWD
system with three electric motors as its racier stablemate ? and puts
a naturally aspirated 3.0-liter V6 up front ? but seats up to seven
people. It goes on sale in early April, and Acura has announced a
starting MSRP of $52,935.
The MDX Sport Hybrid starts at $7,910 higher than the base,
front-wheel-drive MDX, but only $1,500 more than the comparably
equipped, non-hybrid MDX SH-AWD. It offers 31 more ponies, for a total
of 321 peak horsepower and of 289 pound-feet of torque. It's less
expensive than the other Acura to use the Sport Hybrid system, the RLX
sedan, which starts at $59,950. (That car incurs a price premium of
$5,500 over its P-AWS-equipped FWD base model; there's no non-hybrid
AWD RLX.)
The MDX Sport Hybrid gets an EPA-rated 26 mpg city, 27 highway, and
27 combined. Compared to the conventional MDX SH-AWD's 18/26/21 mpg
rating, its biggest fuel economy gains are to be found in city
driving. The Sport Hybrid's figures are even slightly better than the
25/26/26 mpg Acura expected when the car debuted in New York last
year.
The MDX Sport Hybrid should be fairly entertaining to drive, too,
at least for a utility vehicle. It's Acura's most powerful SUV to
date, and it offers four driving modes: Comfort, Normal, Sport, and
Sport+. A seven-speed dual-clutch transmission handles the gear
changes, but the driver can take control via a pair of paddles on the
back of the steering wheel. The SH-AWD system's torque vectoring
feature promises to help make the MDX proficient in the twisty bits,
too.
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